The challenges and economics of drug development in 2022

Based on OHE’s 50th anniversary conference, this publication captures the views of thought leaders from around the world about the scientific and economic climate for drug development by 2022.

Four major themes stood out in the conference discussions, as reported in this publication.

1. Health care will be radically transformed as “precision” medicine plugs into the specific genetic makeup of both patients and diseases, and is paired with increasingly powerful and convenient diagnostics.

2. Innovation will be dramatically different as firms more fully integrate new genome-based technologies, fit processes and structures to new development paradigms, and routinely engage in close collaboration with a diversity of public and private partners.

3. Approval, pricing and financing regimes must change to realize the promise of the new science. Regulatory bodies need both personnel and procedures capable of evaluating, for example, gene-based treatments or medicines paired with diagnostics. For payers, the more targeted treatments require new approaches to HTA and pricing, even pricing by indication in some cases. For policy makers, the demographics of ageing make innovation in financing essential.

4. Innovation and markets will be truly global as demand evolves in emerging markets and as new technologies promise more effective treatments for the scourges of the developing world. Global approaches to pricing and reimbursement are essential to making medicines available to more people and to continuing innovation.

The UK has been a remarkably influential source of innovation in the medical sciences for generations. Recommendations from the conference for ensuring this continues include making full use of the unique resources of the NHS and creating vigorous clusters of research excellence.